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Giant UN conference opens in Rio de Janeiro

Published: June 13, 2012 Comment on this article

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The United Nations' largest-ever conference has kicked off in Rio de Janeiro.

The Rio+20 conference on sustainable development is expected to draw an estimated 50,000 participants including delegates, environmental activists, business leaders and members of indigenous groups.

A boy of the Guarani Kaiowa tribe poses for a photo at the Kari-Oca village, where indigenous from around the world are staying during the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, or Rio+20, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, June 13, 2012. The Rio+20 conference is expected to draw some 50,000 participants including delegates, environmental activists, business leaders and indigenous groups. The event runs through June 22, with three final days of high-profile talks among some 130 top leaders from nations around the globe. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

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The event runs through June 22, with three final days of high-profile talks among about 130 top leaders from nations around the globe.

Secretary of State Hilary Clinton is heading the U.S. delegation. President Barack Obama is not expected to attend.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff was on hand for Wednesday's inauguration at the massive conference center in a Rio suburb where the event is centered.

Rio+20 is a follow-up to an environmental summit held in Rio in 1992.

Sustainable development aims to find more environmentally healthy ways to achieve economic growth.